The mining and burning of coal: effects on health and the environment

Abstract

Australia's coal conundrum is that all political parties say they are concerned about climate change while sanctioning an unprecedented expansion of coalmining and coal seam gas extraction in Australia. Australia's coal contributes to climate change and its global health impacts. Each phase of coal's lifecycle (mining, disposal of contaminated water and tailings, transportation, washing, combustion, and disposing of postcombustion wastes) produces pollutants that affect human health. Communities in which coalmining or burning occurs have been shown to suffer significant health impacts. The health and climate costs of coal are unseen, and when costs to health systems are included, coal is an expensive fuel.

Escalating chronic kidney diseases of multi-factorial origin in Sri Lanka: causes, solutions, and recommendations

“…3 Potential causes, their interactions, and the mechanisms explaining how the continual water and food pollution leading to the development of CKD-mfo among the farmers by levelling the cultivation fields using bulldozers have become routine practices in developing countries, including Sri Lanka. This not only leads to water contamination through runoff and soil erosion, but also exposes the deeply deposited subsurface soils that may contain pollutants, particularly heavy metals [1,2,99]. In addition, these acts enhance the silting of reservoirs in the NCP region, requiring frequent de-sedimentation (i.e.…”

A Comparative Study of Human Health Impacts Due to Heavy Metal Emissions from a Conventional Lignite Coal-Fired Electricity Generation Station, with Post-Combustion, and Oxy- Fuel Combustion Capture Technologies

“…Different studies focus on different kinds of risks associated with the process of carbon capture such as (1) cancer and non-cancer risks; (2) population exposure per unit of emissions, which is associated with atmospheric condition, the population size, and their proximities to the emissions; (3) social and mental impacts; and (4) accidents and deaths [9,14,15,[39][40][41][42]. According to [9], among the emissions from coal-fired electricity-generating plants, As and Cr were the main contributors to cancer risks, and HCl, Mn, HF, and Hg contributed to the noncancer risks.…”

“…According to [9], among the emissions from coal-fired electricity-generating plants, As and Cr were the main contributors to cancer risks, and HCl, Mn, HF, and Hg contributed to the noncancer risks. The coal combustion process can also release many toxic elements, which include As, Hg, Cd, Pb, Se, and Zn, and among these, Hg is of the most concern [15]. According to [43], the population in Estevan has an exceptionally high rate of asthma.…”

“…Emissions from a typical coal-fired electricity-generating station without carbon capture technology include secondary aerosols such as heavy metals, nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), and non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC), which pose risk to human health [15]. The emissions constitute air pollution and can be hazardous to human health [3].…”

Pediatric anxiety and/or depression problems : associations with PM10, fly ash, and metal exposure.

“…The lifecycle of coal involves mining, transporting, washing, pulverizing, combusting, and storing combustion waste; each of these stages affects human health (42). The earliest studies available on coal ash and human health focus on occupational health hazards, however more recent studies suggest that coal ash can impact the physical, mental, and especially the social well-being of the communities surrounding coal-fired power plants and coal ash storage facilities (42)(43)(44)(45)(46)(47). Coal combustion and its waste products are known contributors to several diseases including heart disease, lung cancer, asthma, and stroke (42).…”